Below are some comments about two biblical topics where the power to understand or misunderstand could be found in the adjectives attached to the idea.
I have reposted my good friend and scholar Michael Hanegan's comments below regarding TOTAL depravity and ORIGINAL sin. Michael was responding to our churchwide curriculum study guides.
In last week's take-home material (pg. 19) there was a marginal note labeled "Depravity" that delivered a presentation of what theologians call "original sin" and "total depravity". These are two ideas that are held in various traditions of the Christian faith but are by no means universal or uncontested. Typically, the Churches of Christ have outrightly rejected or modified these doctrines to be different than they are presented here. The following is just a couple of notes to help us think through the ideas presented in that brief summary.
Original Sin
This idea says that we have “inherited” Adam’s sin. That in this sense we are in fact sinful from the moment our life begins. (Psalm 51:5) The implication being that we all need salvation from the outset of our lives.
Total Depravity
This related idea expresses the conviction that “sin” is not only the primary bend of people, but that it is in fact the only possibility for people. People who are born in sin, not only sin by default, but they want to sin from birth.
These ideas have a long and complicated history in the larger Christian tradition. The reasons for these expressions and ideas is complex and diverse. The main points emphasizing in your class times about these two ideas might be as follows:
About Original Sin Scripture teaches that each person is responsible for their own sins. That guilt comes from their own actions, not the actions of those who have gone before them. While it is true that we all experience the consequences of Adam’s sin (death and the disruption of God’s creation) this does not mean that we also experience the guilt of Adam.
About Total Depravity While Scripture clearly teaches that humanity is marred by sin, and that no one is exempt from its consequences and influence (e.g., Romans 3:23), it appears to go beyond the testimony of Scripture that all people are unable to be and unwilling to be anything but totally depraved. In fact, in Romans 2, Paul’s admission that the Gentiles can be “a law unto themselves” without the revelation of God given to the Jews (the Law) would seem to contradict the idea of total depravity.
Let the conversation continue...
1 Cor. 2:10-18 indicates we need the Spirit of God within us in order to be like God. 1 Cor. 2:6-10, and multiple other places, says that God's plan before creation was that we would be like Him and share in His glory. Original sin, depravity, and "the fall of Adam" are distortions that are not supported by the fully revealed plan of God. God did not plan that we would fail and need to be bailed out. Adam's sin was not God's plan gone south. Jesus Christ was not an afterthought to redeem God's foiled plan, messed up by that silly, sneaky snake. We were created to be like God, not to escape depravity. At best, these represent immature teachings (Heb. 6:1-3) that we are to leave behind. Let us move on toward maturity.
ReplyDeleteI looked at your blog concerning adjectives and Calvinism. I certainly agree Calvinism vs Arminianism is complex and has been debated by people way smarter than me for centuries. Its easy to cherry pick Bible verses that seem to support one side or the other and declare these verses to be "clear" and verses that seem to support the other side as being "difficult to properly understand". I have no fixed conclusion in the matter, I have sympathies for both sides. With all that said, here are some observations.
ReplyDeleteIf its true that we have complete free will with no "original sin" and no "total depravity", why is it that everyone, and I do mean everyone including you and me, "freely" chooses to sin? Why does no one ever, other than Jesus, always choose not to sin?
My understanding of "total depravity" does not mean that we *always* choose to sin and that we *never* choose to do whats right as Michael seems to say. Rather it means we do sin and that without God's intervention none of us would genuinely seek the true God. Not *everything* Adam and Eve did was sinful, but there was sin and it was enough to require justice and thus separation from God. To not be just in the matter would require God to be less than perfect because justice is a good thing. God must be good.
Finally, if there is no "original sin" or "total depravity" why is it that every 3 year old who plays with another 3 year old will see a toy the other kid has, covet it for himself, take it away from the other kid and then when asked by an adult "Did you take his toy?" will lie abut it? I am not saying the 3 year old is "morally accountable" or anything about the "age of accountability", simply that every 3 year old knows how to do and does do sinful things like coveting, stealing and lying. No one taught them to do these bad things, it comes "naturally". God gives parents to teach 3 year olds to *not* do these things. Parents have to teach children to do whats right, children already know how to do whats wrong.
I suspect God being infinite can know and do things that we humans, being finite (and will always be finite no matter how much we learn) can never fully understand. This could be the answer to the tension between God's sovereignty and human free will (Calvinism vs Arminianism).
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ReplyDeleteHere's another perspective on the term "Original Sin". Michael wrote, "(About Original Sin) Scripture teaches that each person is responsible for their own sins. That guilt comes from their own actions, not the actions of those
who have gone before them. While it is true that we all experience the consequences of Adam’s sin (death and the disruption of God’s creation) this does not mean that we also experience the guilt of Adam."
When Adam and Eve sinned, the very nature of the universe changed. Read Romans 5:12-21. "When Adam sinned, sin entered (invaded) the world. Adam's sin brought death. So death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned. (vs 12)" The sting of sin, that is, the offensive consequence of sin is Death (Rom. 6:23). Sin is the cause of death. Not only was this death a consequence of sin, but it was also a consequence of the fact that God pulled his life-giving power and glory away from the world (in some sense). Sin brought physical and spiritual separation.
Before sin, there was no death. Death was not inevitable for Adam and Eve. Nor do we have any indication that it was for anything else in creation. Yet, when sin invaded, the nature of all creation changed as if a wave of death washed over all creation - tainting it. As local pastor Sam Storms puts it, "[Sin did not begin] its existence [at the time Adam and Eve sinned] in the Garden of Eden. Paul says it "entered", not that it began to be. Sin already existed as a result of Satan's rebellion. This text [Rom. 5:12] speaks of sin's inaugural entry into the world of humanity. Sin, therefore, is portrayed as an intruder. It was not a constituent element in the original creation." [Ref: http://bit.ly/1bfowPY]. It is because of this sin-taint, all of creation is unwillingly "subjected to God's curse", "but with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God's children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we all know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to this present day." (Rom. 8:20-22)
All of creation suffers from the consequences of the invasion of sin. Plants and animals are now enslaved to death, though they once were not. Entropy wears down mountains and kills the stars of the heavens. And humankind can't keep from sinning. Every single one of us has sinned - without exception. Everything has become corrupted by the taint of sin. The nature of everything has been perverted by sin away from God's original design and intent. We, and everything around us inherits a change in our nature from Adam's sin. "For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. (Rom. 5:17a).
And this is exactly why the advent of the Christ is so beautiful. Just as sin invaded the world corrupting its nature, Jesus invaded the world restoring the world to its pre-sin state of purity, life and harmony with the divine. "But even greater is God's wonderful grace and his gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ. (Rom. 5:17b).
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[Part 2 of 2]
ReplyDeleteSin is abhorrent to God, which is why it caused separation and death. Our corrupted and tainted nature made us guilty of unholiness, unworthiness before God and therefore, not fit the be in the presence of God (Ex. 33:22). We are responsible for our own sin because, without the restoration of God, we are sin. We do not have the power to keep from sinning which is precisely why we need God to rescue us - because we can't help it. We were "dead in our disobedience and sin" (Eph. 2:1). Yet, God quickened us, making us alive through the breath of his life-giving Spirit (Jn. 3, 6:63). And this is the mystery of God - that He looks on that which He abhors with affection and mercy and acts to bring reconciliation. Praise be to our God!
These are difficult scriptures that brothers and sisters have debated for centuries. Personally, when I consider my own story of redemption, I feel I cannot claim any part in the movement toward my salvation - not even my ability to choose God. I was dead in sin - unable to reach for God and utterly helpless (Rom. 5:6). I was an enemy of God (Rom. 5:10) choosing my own desires when he restored our friendship through the death of his son and through His personal invasion of my self-centered creation. There are several ways to interpret these scriptures and none of them are simple which is why we struggle through them together trusting in the Spirit as our guide and shepherd. May God receive the glory in all things.
Andy
I've always considered original sin to be a concept of inherited spiritual genetic tendency, not an inheritance of works. Sin came into the world through Adam as it was Adam who disobeyed God. Because of his sin, death also came into the world. We were originally created to be whole and live without fear of death as Adam and eve were made perfect from the start. But sin tainted that perfection, thus making it imperfect, and death is a physical symptom of a spiritually genetic disease. We all sin. Period. Every single man, woman and child. Jesus brought salvation BECAUSE he had the ability to do the same thing we all do, but didn't because he was also God's son, inheriting the strength to overcome death, and sin in the process. I see Jesus as the spiritual cure for sin. His conquering of death shows that only he is capable of destroying that which destroys God's creation. So in the sense of original sin, I think that we all have inherited the sinful nature, not the sins, of Adam, and thus are left with the choice to live with that sin or take the cure that is Jesus Christ and be saved.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to total depravity, I have come to believe that it is sometimes over defined. I believe total depravity is merely the doctrine that we all have sinful natures and that, without salvation, we will sin. The Holy spirit is the only thing capable of giving the strength we need to overcome sin, yet maintains a constant battle with our sinful desires, as our nature from birth drives us to move ourselves further and further from God. We have freewill and can choose good over evil, but we always have to choose to do good. It is not second nature to us. We have to consciously decide to do what is right, and even still we fail. The taint of sin is spread throughout our souls, and our most righteous acts are like filthy rags in the eyes of God, yet it is the ultimate glorification of our bodies and souls that will purge us of this disease and replace our sinful nature with one of righteousness and untainted connection to God. But yeah, that's just how I view the points.
ReplyDelete